Our Dogs
“If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and man.”
“The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog.”
—Mark Twain
Dogs are humans’ greatest invention, and we domesticated them around 15,000 years ago and we’ve tinkered with their genes ever since. Humanity hasn’t topped the dog. Space travel is neat, organ transplants save lives, but dogs are the perfect organism. Not in their intelligence or ability to survive, but in their unwavering love and constant, boisterous joy.
Allow me to introduce our pups.
Jefferson: We adopted him as an eight-week-old puppy from Albuquerque Animal Humane in 2016. He’s a reverse-brindle (fawn and stripey) pit bull. The most serious puppy I have ever met. Thus, he needed a serious name. He had been surrendered at two weeks along with his sister and bottle-fed by the staff. He used to be afraid of plastic bags but has since recovered. He doesn’t like water much and avoids the dog pool entirely.
Colonel Yuri Gagarin (Yuri): We adopted this block-head white and fawn pittie from our local Mountainair shelter in 2018. He was about six months. Discovered at the dirt strip that serves as Mountainair’s airport, we wanted to name him for a famous pilot, and we settled on the first human in space. He’s a cuddle-bear and goofy as hell. Weirdly, he’s not that into food, and sometimes can’t be bothered from his perch on the sofa when treats are being distributed. He loves water and will dance about in any on hikes. Yet, he doesn’t like rain.
Zia: She hails from the same shelter as Yuri in 2021, a pittie-mix, brindle. She was about a year and a half, found on the streets of Ruidoso. She was about to be euthanized when Friends of the Mountainair Animal Shelter swooped in and picked up her and several others on death row from the Ruidoso shelter. We discovered on her vet check she was pregnant. We got her an abortion and a spay. This poor thing had never been inside a house before, and within five minutes of crossing the threshold of her forever home, she stole my toast from the kitchen counter and shit on the living room floor. She needed a little extra work, obviously. She feared being ditched so much she wouldn’t accompany us on walks beyond the driveway, always retreating to sit at the front door. With months of care and love she became a super-lovey dog who enjoys our wilderness walks more than the other two. Zia is pretty hyper and very eager to please. That’s her shelter name. We might have bestowed another, but we didn’t want to add any more stress.
All three bring us unparalleled joy. Please consider adopting or donating to Friends of the Mountainair Animal Shelter. They are angels helping angels.